Computational model of the role of sensory disorganization in focal task-specific dystonia.

We present a new computational model for the development of task-specific focal dystonia. The purpose of the model is to explain how altered sensory representations can lead to abnormal motor behavior. Dystonia is described as the result of excessive gain through a sensorimotor loop. The gain is determined in part by the sensory cortical area devoted to each motor function, and behaviors that lead to abnormal increases in sensory cortical area are predicted to lead to dystonia. Properties of dystonia including muscular co-contraction, overflow movements, and task specificity are predicted by properties of a linear approximation to the loop transformation. We provide simulations of several different mechanisms that can cause the gain to exceed 1 and the motor activity to become sustained and uncontrolled. The model predicts that normal plasticity mechanisms may contribute to worsening of symptoms over time.

[1]  D. J. Felleman,et al.  Progression of change following median nerve section in the cortical representation of the hand in areas 3b and 1 in adult owl and squirrel monkeys , 1983, Neuroscience.

[2]  J. Kaas,et al.  The reorganization of somatosensory cortex following peripheral nerve damage in adult and developing mammals. , 1983, Annual review of neuroscience.

[3]  D. J. Felleman,et al.  Topographic reorganization of somatosensory cortical areas 3b and 1 in adult monkeys following restricted deafferentation , 1983, Neuroscience.

[4]  C. Marsden,et al.  On the significance of giant somatosensory evoked potentials in cortical myoclonus. , 1984, Journal of neurology, neurosurgery, and psychiatry.

[5]  C. Marsden,et al.  Electrophysiology of somatosensory reflex myoclonus. , 1986, Advances in neurology.

[6]  A. Eisen,et al.  Electromyography in Disorders of Muscle Tone , 1987, Canadian Journal of Neurological Sciences / Journal Canadien des Sciences Neurologiques.

[7]  C. Marsden,et al.  The Physiology of Idiopathic Dystonia , 1987, Canadian Journal of Neurological Sciences / Journal Canadien des Sciences Neurologiques.

[8]  D. O. Hebb,et al.  The organization of behavior , 1988 .

[9]  G. Deuschl,et al.  Hand muscle reflexes following electrical stimulation in choreatic movement disorders. , 1989, Journal of neurology, neurosurgery, and psychiatry.

[10]  B L Day,et al.  Reciprocal inhibition between forearm muscles in patients with writer's cramp and other occupational cramps, symptomatic hemidystonia and hemiparesis due to stroke. , 1989, Brain : a journal of neurology.

[11]  J. Perlmutter,et al.  Abnormal vibration-induced cerebral blood flow responses in idiopathic dystonia. , 1990, Brain : a journal of neurology.

[12]  M. Hallett,et al.  H‐reflex recovery curve and reciprocal inhibition of H‐reflex in different kinds of dystonia , 1990, Neurology.

[13]  M. Merzenich,et al.  Functional reorganization of primary somatosensory cortex in adult owl monkeys after behaviorally controlled tactile stimulation. , 1990, Journal of neurophysiology.

[14]  M. Merzenich,et al.  Reorganization of somatosensory area 3b representations in adult owl monkeys after digital syndactyly. , 1991, Journal of neurophysiology.

[15]  G. Recanzone,et al.  Changes in the distributed temporal response properties of SI cortical neurons reflect improvements in performance on a temporally based tactile discrimination task. , 1992, Journal of neurophysiology.

[16]  E. Capaldi,et al.  The organization of behavior. , 1992, Journal of applied behavior analysis.

[17]  M M Merzenich,et al.  Alterations in correlated activity parallel ICMS-induced representational plasticity. , 1993, Neuroreport.

[18]  Xiaoqin Wang,et al.  Remodelling of hand representation in adult cortex determined by timing of tactile stimulation , 1995, Nature.

[19]  M. Hallett.  Is dystonia a sensory disorder? , 1995, Annals of neurology.

[20]  W M Jenkins,et al.  A primate genesis model of focal dystonia and repetitive strain injury , 1996, Neurology.

[21]  M. Hallett,et al.  Abnormal cortical motor excitability in dystonia , 1996, Neurology.

[22]  M. Merzenich,et al.  Experience-induced plasticity of cutaneous maps in the primary somatosensory cortex of adult monkeys and rats , 1996, Journal of Physiology-Paris.

[23]  M. Merzenich,et al.  Neural representations, experience, and change. , 1996 .

[24]  M. Merzenich,et al.  Sensory dysfunction associated with repetitive strain injuries of tendinitis and focal hand dystonia: a comparative study. , 1996, The Journal of orthopaedic and sports physical therapy.

[25]  Mark Hallett,et al.  Impaired inhibition in writer's cramp during voluntary muscle activation , 1997, Neurology.

[26]  W M Jenkins,et al.  A primate model for studying focal dystonia and repetitive strain injury: effects on the primary somatosensory cortex. , 1997, Physical therapy.

[27]  Positron emission tomography studies in movement disorders. , 1998, Neurosurgery clinics of North America.

[28]  B. Rockstroh,et al.  Alteration of digital representations in somatosensory cortex in focal hand dystonia , 1998, Neuroreport.

[29]  Terence D. Sanger,et al.  Probability Density Methods for Smooth Function Approximation and Learning in Populations of Tuned Spiking Neurons , 1998, Neural Computation.

[30]  M. Hallett.  The neurophysiology of dystonia. , 1998, Archives of neurology.

[31]  Mark Hallett,et al.  Abnormal somatosensory homunculus in dystonia of the hand , 1998, Annals of neurology.

[32]  G. Thickbroom,et al.  The corticomotor representation of upper limb muscles in writer's cramp and changes following botulinum toxin injection. , 1998, Brain : a journal of neurology.

[33]  M. Merzenich,et al.  Representational plasticity in cortical area 3b paralleling tactual-motor skill acquisition in adult monkeys. , 1999, Cerebral cortex.

[34]  E. Schoenle,et al.  Ten-Year Follow-Up in a Boy with Leydig Cell Tumor after Selective Surgery , 1999, Hormone Research in Paediatrics.

[35]  M. Hallett,et al.  Deficient activation of the motor cortical network in patients with writer’s cramp , 1999, Neurology.

[36]  F Mauguière,et al.  Abnormal central integration of a dual somatosensory input in dystonia. Evidence for sensory overflow. , 2000, Brain : a journal of neurology.

[37]  Mark Hallett,et al.  Sensory discrimination capabilities in patients with focal hand dystonia , 2000, Annals of neurology.